And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. Acts 7:9, 10
Our Father who is in heaven, May Your name be hallowed and glorified. As we walk on this journey called life please hold our hands. Please keep us close to Your side. Please preserve us and our dreams that when we see You face to face we can give You all the honor and glory that belongs to You. We ask this in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Yesterday we looked into Joseph’s pit and perhaps some of us could identify with it in different ways. In some cases hopelessness, in others, helplessness. I hope all of us concluded that it was not our final destination, and gave God thanks that we are still alive!
You would believe that being put into a pit was enough preparation for a little boy on the verge of becoming a young man, wouldn’t you? But who knows better than God what we will need to be ready to face the changes and challenges in our lives? So God is remains with Joseph as he goes from the pit to the prison.
What I have noticed is that the greater the assignment God has for us in life, the harsher will be the preparation. That sounds very discouraging I know, but what has provided me with some measure of comfort as I think about this is that the method of preparation is customized. No one will ever receive more than he or she can bear.
In one of my experiences, I remember saying to God “if I did not believe what you said, that you would not give me more than I can bear, I would believe that I could not bear this.” That is how hard some of the classes can be. But we are never alone. God is always with us.
“But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing. “The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper” (Genesis 37:21-23, emphasis provided).
Little did Joseph know that this was a pale shadow of the real responsibility God was preparing him for, the fulfillment of his dream. a dream that the pit could not bury nor the prison keep in shackles. Because God was with him.